With days to go before the Canadian Province of British Columbia’s strict vaccine mandate for Public Servants comes into full force, there have been calls for it to be scrapped.
Under the mandate, officers who remain unvaccinated without a valid medical or other exemption are to be placed on an unpaid leave of absence for three months, after which they could be terminated.
The first affected employees will reach the end of that three-month period on 24 February.
A group calling itself BC Public Service Employees for Freedom, representing employees who felt forced into receiving the COVID-19 vaccine to keep their jobs, or who are facing termination for non-compliance, has written an open letter calling for an end to the vaccination mandate.
“We were told this was about employee safety, and that vaccination was the safest, most effective measure to reduce transmission in our communities,” a group spokesperson said, asking for anonymity for fear of reprisals.
“The problem is, the vaccines haven’t stopped infection or transmission, and most office-based Public Servants are still working from home.”
The Public Service Agency said it had no plans to end the proof-of-vaccination requirement, which would be in effect “until general public health concerns regarding COVID-19 are reduced to a level to enable workplaces to operate without restrictions or a vaccination requirement”.
The group argues that if their vaccinated colleagues can work from home online, they should be allowed to as well.
It said those on unpaid leave had reported that if they were fired, they would be ineligible for unemployment insurance and would have a tough time finding similar employment and pay.
The British Columbia General Employees’ Union said the vast majority of its members were vaccinated.
“Since the beginning of the vaccine program we have encouraged every union member who can get vaccinated to do so and, since the beginning of vaccine mandates, we have encouraged any member who believes their collective agreement rights have been violated to contact their union immediately,” the union said in a statement.
The Public Service Agency said about 98 per cent of the just over 38,000 Government employees had shown proof of partial or full vaccination, leaving about 400 who had not.
Victoria, 10 February 2022
